FTC: Increase in Tax-Related ID Theft Complaints

March 12, 2012

Kirsten here from AllClear ID. We’ve talked a lot about identity theft and taxes this year, and now there’s a new report from the FTC showing the number of identity theft complaints involving tax and wage fraud is soaring, even as law enforcement tries to crack down on them. Federal Trade Commission officials told the Associated Press “24 percent of the nearly 279,000 identity theft complaints it received in 2011 came from people concerned their Social Security numbers had been stolen and used to fraudulently file for tax refunds or apply for jobs” – an increase of 8% above the previous year.

To protect yourself against identity theft of your tax return, check out our Facebook page with a great download on this topic. The IRS and the FTC also have good guides on how to combat tax fraud.